A.D. 852.
VICTORY OVER ΤΠΕ DANES.
41
sou of Freawin, who was the son of Freoderegeat, who was the son of Brand, who was the son of Bealdeag, who was the son of Woden, who was the son of Friderwald, who was the son of Frealaf, who was the son of Friderwulph, who was the son of Fingoldulph, who was the son of Geta, (which Geta the pagans long worshipped as a god,) who was the son of Cetua, who was the son of Bean, who was the son of Sceldua, who was the son of Heremod, who was the son of Itermod, who was the son of Hathra, who was the son of Wala, who was the son of Beadwig, who was the son of Shem, who was the son of Noah, who was the son of Lamech, who was the son of Methusaleh, who was the son of Enoch, who was the son of Malaleel, who was the son of Canaan, who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam.
The mother of Alfred was named Osburg, an extremely pious woman, noble by nature, noble too by birth ; she was the daughter of Oslae, the famous butler of king Ethelwulph ; who was a Goth by nation, inasmuch as he was descended from the Goths and Jutes, of the seed of Stuf and Withgar, two brothers and earls ; who, having received possession of the isle of Wight from their uncle, king Cerdie, and his son Cinric, their eousin, slew the few British inhabitants they could find in that island, at a place called Withgaraburgh ;55 for the rest of the inhabitants of the island had been either slain or had escaped into exile.
In the year 851, Cheorl, earl of Devonshire, with the men of Devon, fought against the Danes and defeated them. In the same year a great army of the pagans came with three hundred and fifty ships to the mouth of the river Thames, and sacked Dorobernia, that is, the city of Canterbury, and put to flight Bretwulph, king of the Mercians, who had come to ippose them.
After this, the Danes growing more bold, all their army was collected in Surrey. On hearing this, Ethelwulph, the mighty warrior, with his son, Ethelbald, collected an army at the place which is called Akelea,66 and, engaging with the pagans, he defeated 'them with unheard-of slaughter.
In the year 852, Berthwulph, king of the Mercians, departed this life, and was succeeded by Burrhed. In the same year,
M It is supposed that this may have been Carisbrook, in the isle of Wight. 56 Ockley, in Surrey.

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